Sunderland’s January recruits hit the ground running to help the Black Cats beat the drop - with Lamine Kone admitting even he was surprised at how quickly he adapted to life in the Premier League.

Of the five signings Sam Allardyce made, three - Kone, Jan Kirchhoff, and Wahbi Khazri - had never played in England before, but played major roles in keeping the club in the top flight.

Kirchhoff’s midfield performances grabbed the headlines, and Khazri also added some much-needed creativity in the final third, but crucially Kone helped stabilise a defence that had been leaking goals.

And the Ivory Coast international also chipped in with two vital goals in the Black Cats’ 3-0 win over Everton, which secured safety.

Allardyce said at the turn of the year that any new signings he brought to the club would have to be capable of stepping straight into the first-team, and Kone and his fellow midseason arrivals did just that - prompting Big Sam to reflect that this was arguably his best-ever January window.

Kone said: “It shows that we’ve adapted well to the Premier League, but it’s not just us, it’s all the people around us as well who welcomed us from the start. They helped us.

“I’m really happy with how these four months have gone.

“To be honest, I didn’t know that I would adapt so quickly.”

Kone had a baptism of fire, making his debut against a Manchester City side that included Sergio Aguero, David Silva, and his international team-mate Yaya Toure.

And while Sunderland lost that game 1-0 at the Stadium of Light, Kone proved he was immediately up to speed.

“The first game against Man City, I played well and after that, I just hit the ground running,” said Kone, who joined from Lorient in a £5m deal.